CHRYSLER’S TORQUEFLITE 8-SPEED TRANSMISSION BRINGS

FUEL SAVINGS + EMISSIONS REDUCTIONS

With the introduction of the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat, the TorqueFlite transmission family adds its third member – the 8HP90 high-performance automatic that affords greater torque capacity than any eight-speed previously offered by Chrysler. savings and emissions reductions attributed to TorqueFlite eight-speed transmissions are adding up to substantial gains for Chrysler Group customers, said Chrysler spokesman Eric Mayne.

The advanced-technology automatics – first of their kind ever made available to mainstream brand customers – now are powering more than one million vehicles worldwide, said Mayne. And their combined effect is staggering, he said. Over their lifetimes, vehicles equipped with TorqueFlite eightspeed transmissions are projected to save their owners more than 700 million gallons of fuel, compared with their predecessors that featured five- or six-speed automatics. That quantity of gasoline is worth approximately $2.5 billion at the pump, based on current fuel-price forecasts. The effect will also reduce combined CO2 emissions by more than six million metric tons, Mayne said.

Chrysler named the new eight-speed transmission TorqueFlite as a way to honor the company’s history. “We first used the name TorqueFlite back in the

1950s,” Mayne said. “The technology may have changed, but what TorqueFlite represents – superior technology giving superior performance and greater efficiency – that hasn’t changed, so we used the name again.”

TorqueFlite eight-speed transmissions in model-year 2014 vehicles also contribute to 19 Chrysler fuel-economy or driving- range benchmarks across four vehicle segments. “This is precisely the kind of impact we targeted with the TorqueFlite program,” said Jeffrey Lux, vice president and head of Transmission Powertrain

When the TorqueFlite 8HP45/845RE made its debut in model-year 2012, the transmission was mated exclusively to Chrysler’s award-winning 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 in the Charger and Chrysler 300 lineups. Since then, the TorqueFlite 845RE and 8HP70 have migrated, respectively, to Pentastar- and HEMI-powered versions of the Dodge Durango, Ram 1500 and Jeep Grand Cherokee lineups. The 8HP70 also serves EcoDiesel versions of the 1500 and Grand Cherokee.

Lower viscosity transmission fluid is used to improve operating efficiency and fuel economy, especially during cold environments or vehicle start-up, Lux said. The TorqueFlite also is “fill-for-life.” That means, Lux said, that it never requires oil changes, when subjected to normal driving conditions.